NOVEL WEB Chapter 422
Even though the guest was Alicia, Catherine couldn’t let herself act worse than this in front of her guests, so she quickly composed her flustered face.
Above all, there was another guest, Zigmeser.
To the two who came to greet her, Catherine pointed out that she was also a guest, and since Karem was the one who invited them, they should speak to him.
“By the way, a tasting session out of the blue? Karem, did you come across something good?”
Karem, who was preparing fresh apples, asked Mary.
“Didn’t I mention it?”
“Isn’t it better for as few people as possible to know?”
“Well, that’s true.”
Currently, only a few knew about the unicorn that had just been hunted.
It was only a handful who had seen it with their own eyes in the Mage Tower and the villagers of Border Edge at the southernmost part of Iceland, which Godwin was in the midst of rebuilding.
So, it was likely that serious rumors wouldn’t spread until spring. Though, once the contractor hired by the Adventurer Guild spread the word, that couldn’t be stopped.
“Well, this gathering is a return for the previous invitation and the enjoyment we’ve had since then.”
“Huh? But Alicia hasn’t really done anything.”
“You enjoyed my cooking, didn’t you? That’s enough.”
Umm? Alicia couldn’t quite grasp what her joy had to do with Karem’s satisfaction.
Zigmeser, being a colleague in the same industry and a senior in feeding Alicia, seemed to understand her feelings well and silently empathized.
To cut through the flowery language and get to the point.
It was that he wanted to see Alicia eat heartily.
Catherine could somewhat understand this, albeit in a different way.
“Well, in conclusion, since it’s come to this, I plan to quench my curiosity and fulfill Alicia’s dream.”
“Eh? Alicia’s dream.”
Alicia, perplexed by Karem’s words, tilted her head down to look at her palms, folding and unfolding her fingers one by one.
“…Which dream are you talking about?”
“Huh?”
“I have so many dreams that I’m not sure which one you mean.”
Alicia, at the tender age of seven.
Still at an age full of dreams.
Her imagination was rich, and she had many hopes.
Culinary adventures with dragon meat, a gourmet journey across the continent, cooking monsters she had hunted herself, a phoenix egg, cooking using magic, and eating ice cream in front of her parents at midnight, among others!
Recently, she had the chance to fulfill one of those wishes.
“You said you wanted to try unicorn meat.”
Karem answered correctly.
That was right.
Eating unicorn meat.
However, regrettably, the unicorn onager had to leave the city urgently and it had become a distant dream. Should she have stuck around until she could be given a taste?
“Wait a second.”
Before long, Zigmeser, sitting comfortably with his arms crossed and nodding, suddenly opened his eyes wide and stared at Karem.
“I think Alicia heard something wrong. Sorry, but could you please say that again?”
“It’s unicorn meat. It’s being prepared now.”
“…Huh?”
Karem, who put aside the bowl and spatula he was fiddling with, took out a new bowl and combined sliced unicorn meat with the seasoning.
The meat and seasoning melded together. Mary put a handful of raw meat dish on each plate and garnished them with apples to enhance texture, color, and flavor.
The final touch was a bright yellow yolk and a sprinkle of sesame seeds on top.
“Now, this is prepared as a palate cleanser—”
“-Carpaccio? But it looks different.”
“Well…let’s say it can be called carpaccio.”
Although “tartare steak” would be more accurate, if carpaccio exists here, that would suffice. So Zigmeser likely naturally associated it with carpaccio.
Sniff-sniff—
Zigmeser’s nostrils flared broadly, and he briefly held the plate in both hands, moving it around as he hummed and observed, looking more like a merchant appreciating a piece of artwork than a noble.
“Upon closer inspection, the meat is cut thin and long like noodles.”
“Yes. After bursting the yolk with a fork and mixing well, you can eat it.”
“Could I try just this meat separately?”
“There’s no reason you can’t.”
As soon as permission was granted, Alicia’s hand moved.
With fork in hand, Alicia snatched a strand of the raw meat dish with the precision of a hawk catching its prey.
Whether she was aiming purely to savor the taste or not, the raw meat twisted around her fork and popped right into her mouth.
“Yum!”
The moment it touched her tongue, a burst of sour, sweet, tangy, nutty, and salty flavors filled her mouth in a delightful harmony.
What followed was the texture. Unlike the thinly sliced carpaccio, its form was long and thick, but the texture was also different.
At first, it clung to her teeth, being chewy and sticky, but as she continued to chew, it released a sweet essence stronger than horse meat and began to dissolve.
The understated sweetness that subtly accompanied was a rich yet light flavor.
It was certainly soy sauce and sesame oil.
Alicia’s face crinkled as she felt a mix of joy and astonishment.
She had assumed that eating them together would have a destructive effect, but who knew they would blend together so well…!
“Contractor. How do you wish to eat this?”
“Hmm… Karem. You said mixing is the first step, right?”
“Yes. You can add some apple on top and enjoy it together.”
Following Karem’s instructions and Catherine’s intent, Mary took a fork and lightly cracked the yolk at the top.
Like lava reaching its threshold and oozing, the yolk flowed onto the raw meat dish, creating a waterfall effect as it cascaded down, though the fork held its place.
Defying the laws of nature with an impressive fluff, the sliced apples were combined with the raw meat and expertly rolled up and presented.
Chomp.
If Alicia was the first to feel a spectrum of lively flavors, Catherine’s palate was greeted first by the creamy texture and nutty flavor.
However, it didn’t last long.
As her tongue grew accustomed to the yolk’s richness, the liquid quickly concealed its place, allowing the underlying flavors to emerge gradually.
‘So that’s why the yolk was added.’
The flavor, bathed in yolk, felt like the taste of raw chicken breast washed down with a glass of cola.
Since her tongue was soaked in the yolk, the flavor of the raw meat came through even more distinctly and vividly.
What tied everything together, surprisingly, was the apple.
“Now that I think about it, there were certainly salad vegetables included in the carpaccio. But who knew its role would be this crucial?”
Alicia, Zigmeser, and even Mary, who had taken a slight taste, nodded in agreement.
A refreshing burst of flavors revived their fatigued tongues.
Completely different crunchiness in an area filled with similar textures.
Both characteristics acted like a sort of palate cleanser, leaving their mouths feeling fresh even after eating.
“Indeed, even though I didn’t expect much, it’s clear unicorn meat makes a big difference.”
“The plate is empty. Would you like more?”
“I request it. But this time, please serve it more generously. The portion was too small.”
“This is merely a palate cleanser, after all.”
Yet Karem had been preparing the unicorn meat for just such an occasion.
Swiftly mixing and presenting again, Karem turned to Alicia, whose plate was empty.
“Would you like more, Lady Alicia?”
“Hmm… You said it was a palate cleanser, right?”
Alicia looked into her empty plate, glancing back as if seeing her reflection, shaking her head as she lowered the plate.
“I think I’m okay now.”
“I knew this would happen, huh? Something feels off.”
“Alicia said she’d had enough.”
Zigmeser, who had been about to eat the raw meat dish, dropped his fork, and Mary, who had maintained a neutral expression, slightly faltered, while Catherine visibly jumped in surprise.
Silence fell.
Palate clearing dishes are meant to whet the appetite before a main meal, yet Alicia had filled herself with palate-cleansing fare and was now stuffed with the main dish.
That was until now.
But why all of a sudden?
Because she was a spirit being, and she even spoke?
However, Zigmeser recalled how Alicia had made a chilling proposition to the onager every day, asking if she could eat just a little of him.
“Umm, now that I’ve eaten, I can’t help but think of the onager. I guess that’s why it feels a bit hard to eat now…”
Had she somehow come to consider him a friend without realizing it?
Yet, it didn’t seem wise to say anything after cleaning her plate. Still, thinking it through, it was quite a huge decision for Alicia, who surely could have polished off ten plates worth to stop at just one.
Watching Alicia lower her plate, her hand trembled slightly, indicating how seriously she was deliberating and resisting her impulses.
However, one thing lingered on her mind.
“We still have one more dish left.”
“Huh?”
“Sushi topped with four parts of the unicorn. Here it is.”
“…Sushi (vinegared rice)?”
Karem thumped the cutting board onto the table.
A mound of rice shaped into bite-size pieces was topped with white, rosy, crimson, and intricately marbled red meat laid out in a row, filling Alicia’s eyes completely.
“…”
“Wait, why is the rice so short and fat?”
“Ah, you should try picking it up with the chopsticks or your fingers rather than using a fork like that.”
As Karem set out the soy sauce in individual portions, Alicia’s pupils shimmered with excitement.
“Sushi. Indeed, if it’s this, it’s certainly going to taste much better than the raw fish sushi I had before.”
“…Karem, what the heck did you do for Sir Atanitas, your master and lover?”
“Now, I want to give it a try too!”
Karem, who was clearly dodging the subject, ignored Zigmeser’s inquisitive gaze and skillfully rolled up a piece of the soy-sauced meat sushi into his mouth.
Unlike Zigmeser, who wore a doubtful expression, Catherine couldn’t help but crack a small smile.
Seems like he’s clearly trying to avoid explaining that.
“Well, I don’t think it matters much.”
“Contractor, which one will you eat first?”
“I’ll start with the less oily rosy piece.”
From the beginning, he had chosen to skip the white piece first to avoid ruining the flavor of the sushi he would eat later.
As Mary brought over a piece of rosy horse meat sushi with soy sauce applied, Catherine took it in one mouthful.
‘This is slightly unexpected.’
It was immeasurably softer than the raw horse meat or the horse meat carpaccio she had eaten before.
The moment she chewed, it broke apart effortlessly, revealing a texture that melted into the contrast of its luscious sweetness accentuated by the umami of the soy sauce.
Meanwhile, a refreshing acidity began to emerge, enhancing the sweetness of the rice, creating a taste distinct from the horse meat and soy sauce, while remaining similar.
Then she moved on to the slightly darker red piece.
Unlike the initial smooth rosy piece, this had the same chewy and sticky texture she experienced while eating raw meat.
The sizable thickness was distinctly different, yet before one could feel it might be tough, it too broke apart smoothly like raw meat.
After tasting the oily sushi, Catherine paused momentarily, employing her magic to slightly raise the temperature in her mouth.
‘Yes, this is the flavor.’
The sweet, oily essence melting at the tongue’s warmth.
As the tightly filled space emptied, the textures became smoother.
And without a doubt, the astonishing aspect was that the seemingly white meat resembled not something akin to salted pork fat but was as if the butter of a blue fish had melted away.
‘It’s melting on my tongue.’
This was unlike anything she had eaten before.
The third piece, while similar to the sushi that had strands of fatty meat, still had a texture distinct from any sushi she had ever had.
The structure of the meat served to hold the fat together, and although it became softer later on, initially it felt chewy, not too firm.
Before long, this sushi melted seamlessly on her tongue with the elevated temperature, blending into the rice, enhancing its flavors.
“What in the world is this white meat!?”
“It’s the mane meat above the neck.”
“Goodness, this melts faster than well-cooked mackerel belly meat! How could this be…!?”
“…Being isolated, it would be better… No, considering the environment… The more I think, the more angry I get.”
“Nomnomnomnomnom.”
Zigmeser kept shoveling mouthfuls of sushi as he endlessly gushed in amazement, while Catherine was reminded of bad memories and kept offering her different types to taste, with Mary also shoving in two pieces at a time.
Once the cutting board had mostly been cleared, Karem quickly paused their meal and prepared some charcoal with tongs to pick up—
Sizzle sizzle sizzle—
He began to sear the sushi.
Chiiiing—
As white smoke billowed up, the aroma of charcoal grilling wafted through.
When the tongs were lifted, a beautifully charred surface revealed itself.
“Now, with this, it’ll taste even better—”
“NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!”
That beautifully grilled horse meat sushi disappeared in an instant.
Four pairs of eyes turned toward the culprit, but Alicia wore an innocent expression while eagerly chewing her sushi.
“Still, outside of Alicia, everyone seems to be enjoying it!”
Alicia couldn’t help but set aside her guilt of eating the friend of the onager she had come to care for.